As we sit through the lull between the end of Final Fantasy spoilers and prerelease weekend, anticipation is at an all-time high. Players are brewing decks with the new cards, and powerful interactions are coming to light. Among all this excitement, some players have found a novel way of using the Final Fantasy cards early, thanks to Alchemy on MTG Arena.
Because of how a couple of cards work, it’s possible to make use of the Final Fantasy cards that have been added to the Arena client prior to their official release. This method isn’t particularly reliable, nor is it likely to win you many games. It is, however, a way to see the new cards in action early for those particularly hyped for the set.
Playing With Final Fantasy Early
Getting early access to the MTG Final Fantasy cards on Arena is possible through two different Alchemy cards. These are Fear of Change from Alchemy: Duskmourn and Ornate Imitations from Alchemy: Aetherdrift. Regardless of the format played, both these cards can Conjure up any random creature on MTG Arena.
It turns out, apparently, that this can even Conjure cards that have yet to be officially released, as Reddit user Less_Ad_8156 recently discovered. Posting to the /MagicArena subreddit, Less_Ad_8156 showcased a copy of Quistis Trepe that’d been Conjured into play by Ornate Imitations. While this is just one example, the aforementioned cards should let you Conjure any Final Fantasy creature into play early.
If you’re planning to do this yourself, aiming to Conjure a nine-cost creature is the best bet right now. As hexanort points out, “There’s only 16 in Arena and FF add two more, decent chance to get Bahamut or Diamond Weapon.” To increase the odds, you’ll also want to load a deck built around this goal with bounce effects to maximize Fear of Change’s potential.
Thankfully, a Simic deck would have plenty of options in this regard, even in Alchemy. Currently, Visage Bandit, Naga Fleshcrafter, and Fear of Isolation are all Alchemy legal and work wonders with Fear of Change. Sadly, the same synergy doesn’t exist for Ornate Imitations, but you’ll likely still want four copies to maximize the random Conjure triggers.
If you’re lucky, playing an Alchemy deck built around this goal could let you see a fair few Final Fantasy cards early. That being said, such a decklist likely wouldn’t be competitive at all, especially in ranked games. Still, it’s a novel thing to do ahead of the release of Final Fantasy on MTG Arena on June 10th.
A Surprising Change
Curiously, this isn’t the first time that this early access bug has occurred. Ahead of the release of Tarkir: Dragonstorm, Fear of Change and Ornate Imitations were capable of Conjuring cards from that set, too. This odd occurrence is thanks to recent changes in how Wizards of the Coast implements sets on MTG Arena.
Nowadays, Wizards releases a new set on MTG Arena in two stages. One week before the full release, on May 3rd for Final Fantasy, Wizards adds the new cards to the client. Then, on the official release date, the new cards and content are unlocked for players to enjoy in earnest. In theory, this is intended to allow players to brew and pre-build decks on the client before the official release.
While Wizards’ new distribution method does accomplish this goal, it appears there are side effects. Curiously, since this has happened for two set releases now, Wizards may be okay with it. That being said, development and bug fixes, especially, can take a long time to develop. The long-standing bug that massively buffed Mistrise Village, for example, has only just been fixed.
With this in mind, it remains to be seen whether or not this interaction will be patched in the future. For now, at least, MTG Arena players can technically enjoy Final Fantasy cards slightly earlier than intended. Thankfully, if this interaction is too random for your tastes, Final Fantasy’s full MTG Arena release is only six days away.
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